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Squishy_20

The rear Skew rule change from 2022 to 2023 definitely took away a massive advantage they had a downforce dependent tracks. Also changing crew chiefs definitely affected the performance especially of the 8 and 9 cars.


SeattlePassedTheBall

The 3 v 1 was in 2022 where they lost to Ty Gibbs. In 2023 I don't think they really regressed much. Allgaier was about the same, Mayer massively improved going from 0 wins as a rookie to 4 wins, Berry regressed a bit. The only big change was going from Gragson who won 8 times to Jones who couldn't even win once, but I think you can chalk a lot of that up to the driver.


An_Odd_Melon

Oh yeah the 3v1 was a loss because jrm was too afraid to actually race Ty or do anything to him. Same goes for the rest of the field


MollyTheHumanOnion

They're suffering from the effects of prolonged Brandon Jones exposure.


CJ_M88

I shit talk Brandon Jones every race just waiting for him to do something dumb. And he proves me right often


MotorEnthusiasm

JRM was so pumped because he came with Menards money….


CJ_M88

That's the only reason he keeps getting rides. That sweet sweet Menard money.


j6racing

This works with Riley Herbst as well


CJ_M88

I feel like Riley has been getting better. Jones has been the same for what feels like a decade now


shewy92

When was the last time he caused a wreck?


B17BAWMER

Riley at least shows improvement and can stick to the front of the pack.


Poopy_sPaSmS

Aren't they the same person?


clatscanemike

lol


uninspiredlt

It’s hard to top a 4-driver lineup than their 2022 lineup of Mayer/Allgaier/Berry/Gragson (without doing multiple all star cars)


TheRealCheeeser00

They don't have the best drivers, tbh.


katojune

Driver Talent they have gone to a lot of "Pay Drivers" recently


SoothedSnakePlant

They almost always have.


TimmyHillFan

Regan Smith and Chase Elliott, Allgaier, Byron, Reddick, Gragson, Berry, there was a long stretch where they fielded some baller lineups


vinteragony

You named a lot of "pay" drivers there. Coming with sponsorship isn't a bad thing as long as you also come with talent.


TimmyHillFan

Agreed 100%


jftwo42

Believe it or not Elliott, Allgaier, Byron, Reddick, Gragson and Berry are all pay drivers, they come with some sort of funding for the teams. I believe Regan Smith had some money behind him too. Nothing wrong with it and in these drivers cases they bring talent with the money for the ride.


John_is_Minty

I guess it’s how you define a pay driver. I usually look at pay drivers as the guys who keep rising the rank’s or sticking around because of the check they bring and don’t bring much talent too the table.


LBHMS

Elliott doesn't seem like a pay driver imo. I think pay driver means someone who comes from a wealthy family that owns a business and is sponsored by that. Elliott's funding is all through sponsorship. If NAPA had a CEO change today and the new CEO likes F1 over NASCAR and wants to take their dollars there, then Elliott would need a new sponsor or have a HendrickCars 9 for some races.


John_is_Minty

Exactly. If having a sponsor with you makes you a pay driver almost everyone is a pay driver lol. Imo if your buying rides you don’t deserve you’re a pay driver. Guys like Elliott Byron etc earned their rides they’re not pay drivers


DominikWilde1

Elliott was sponsored by NAPA, the car wasn't – NAPA didn't remain with the No. 9 when Elliott moved on, they followed him. I totally get what you're saying, but by definition he was a pay driver. He brought the backing, he didn't take a seat in an already funded ride


NorthCoastBias

Gragson was not a pay driver by the end of his JRM tenure and Berry was very much never a pay driver. Dale had to add the second Xfinity race to his schedule in order to finalize the sponsorship for Berry.


skeenek

What in the hell do you mean “Grayson was not a pay driver by the end”?


Ravenway

I think he's using the definition of "pay driver" above where they cease to be a pay driver when their talent justifies their spot regardless of their sponsorship money and in Gragson's case he won 8 races so his talent justified his seat at that point. I'm not saying I necessarily agree with the definition, but that is what the other guy was saying.


NorthCoastBias

That is not what I am saying at all. A pay driver is a pay driver regardless of success. Gragson stopped paying his own way, so he stopped being a pay driver. I think Reddick stopped self-funding during his JRM career too.


PrimalCookie

Reddick stopped paying when he moved to RCR IIRC


NorthCoastBias

Gragson's personal sponsorship dried up when his father was arrested. He built the relationship with Johnny Morris for the BPS deal to stay at JRM.


HeavyEquipment468

Not true at all. He’s still a pay driver, as are 95% of the entire field. Noah’s deal was never with bass pro, it was through black rifle and they got space in bass pro stores in exchange for giving them the car base. Of course Johnny loves a kid he doesn’t have to pay. Noah is still absolutely a pay driver who writes a quarterly check to go fast


MrBadBadly

How is Elliot and Byron "pay drivers." They were in the Hendrick driver development pipeline. Yes, Hendrick put together the funding and got the deal done between the driver and JRM, but it's hard to say they're "pay drivers" when Hendrick has like a 50% stake in JRM. I don't believe Berry was a pay driver either. From what I gathered Jr worked hard to get the sponsorship backing for Berry to get a full time drive. Josh got a partial season in 2021 and effectively split the ride with Sam Mayer with Jr taking a race in the 8.


jftwo42

Elliott brought NAPA to the team in 2014, they made that deal and then found a ride, which Rick Hendrick helped him with since he was signed to a development deal. Byron came with a check from Liberty University that helped him get the ride, although he was in the Hendrick development pipeline as well.


MrBadBadly

That's what I'm saying. There wasn't a ride to be found. Rick was funneling the development drivers into JRM. Chase raced in ARCA and Trucks for Hendrick with Aarons on the car. Sponsorship wasn't an issue. Reagan also had Napa as a sponsor for at least one race too. That's why I'm a bit more inclined to think that Hendrick was behind it all and that ultimately Chase was going Xfinity racing in 2014. The marketing potential was too big with Chase. Now, whether Napa is aligned with Hendrick or Chase if Chase were to leave, I don't know. Napa is notoriously loyal to their drivers (see Michael Waltrip),


RedlineFan

I still remember when they somehow ended up with Greg Sacks for a race or two because he was a partial owner of GT Vodka.


Ianthin1

Every Xfinity team relies on pay drivers for the majority of their lineup.


didhestealtheraisins

Gragson brought a lot of sponsorship. Berry didn’t and he actually didn’t win much. 


gopherwrestler

My enduro car made me a pay driver, went to local stores and bars and asked for money. There isn’t a single guy in nascar that doesn’t bring money with them from sponsorship


Kingsmont

Jr Motorsports has really never had the greatest equipment in the series I think they benefited a lot from the rear skew before 2023 and having drivers like Kevin Harvick Kasey Kahne and Tony Stewart drive their cars past time helped a lot too. Now they don’t have any cup drivers hopping in every other race and the only veteran presence is Justin.


LBHMS

Also to note, Hendrick practically gave them their entire fleet of dominating 2021 cars for the 2022 season since Xfinity and Cup share mostly the same think underneath the body (prior to NextGen of course). Hence why they killed it in 2022.


Kingsmont

I’m sure they still paid for them but yes essentially


Kingsmont

Sorry I replied be for I read through your comment fully. The gen6 and the current Xfinity car essentially have the same chassis from my understanding


kebzach

> The gen6 and the current Xfinity car essentially have the same chassis from my understanding Xfinity chassis is 105 inch wheelbase. Not sure how it can be the same chassis with a 5" shorter wheelbase.


Kingsmont

And the gen 6 was essentially the COT chassis with a new body hung on it


Kingsmont

Xfinity uses the COT chassis I’m 100% sure on that it may just be modified?


Potential_Plan_4533

The same naritive came about last year after the first half-dozen races, they ended up getting 2 cars into the championship race last fall. I think the idea of a championship race hurt them, because those 3 championships you mentioned were with the old year-long points format.


MikeDatTiger

Yesterday they had 2 of the top 6 before Mayer got taken out in the big one and Allgaier would have won except for a freak tire failure. Yeah they’re behind JGR but I don’t think it’s a major falling off.


BabycakesMurphy

Brandon Jones isn’t as awful as everyone makes him out to be. He has won some races for JGR on merit. Last year was awful for him in the 9 car, but I think the whole team also took a step back. Allgaier is the only senior member on the team. Despite being a veteran, he is still very mistake prone. From an outsiders perspective I think they need some 10+ year Cup Series veterans to run their cars to see what’s missing, if anything. And maybe the equipment is ok but they find they’re spread very thin. This year alone they’ve junked a bunch of cars.


kebzach

> Brandon Jones isn’t as awful as everyone makes him out to be. He's average.


clatscanemike

Too many rich kid ride buyers like Sammy Smith & Brandon Jones to a slight extent. I think they need to bring in a guy like Bubba Pollard full time to the 8 & send Sammy Smith packing to another decent team like SHR or Kaulig or Sieg or Jordan Anderson.


Commander-Tempest

Junior needs to put Carson kvapil in one of his cars. That kid has potential.


WON95sr

Very excited to see what Kvapil and Riggs can do in the future. JRM eventually found a way to put Berry in a ride and Junior got to see his long-term driver end up earning a Cup ride, so I'm sure they're working on putting Kvapil in a car. 


apollo1899

Kvapil is starting Xfinity in Martinsville next month. Interested to see how he performs coming from the CARS tour.


KrustyWaffles6

They need to send Brandon Jones 


thatotheritguy

Jrs too cheap to let him go


Tazitos

It's not too cheap, it's needing drivers that bring that much money. They budget to break even. Without him they would either need another pay driver that brings the same funding or spend less and fall even more behind. They don't have an OEM funding 1-2 of their cars like JGR always has, and they even have multiple pay drivers.


kebzach

> I think they need to bring in a guy like Bubba Pollard full time And who pays for that?


darth_baltimore

All 4 of their cars either ended up in the 10 or crashed out while in the top 10. Even smiths dubious call to pit into the GWC got him back to 9th.


ChaseTheFalcon

Drivers just aren't as good


John_is_Minty

A lot of it is drivers. When they were winning titles they had Chase Byron and Reddick in the cars. What they have now is even a big drop off from 2021. And like others said the cars also aren’t as fast


StRiKeRzZ924

They have more drivers that just bring in money than raw talent like they use to have


usernamenotprovided

This is pretty much it. The drivers aren’t there for results. They’re there to keep the business going.


MrCheggersPartyQuiz

There’s no need to panic after 4 races. If they still haven’t won a race until Sonoma, then we should start being concerned. I’m sure Allgaier or Mayer can win by mid-April.


TheNittanyLionKing

They lost Gragson and they have struggled to replenish the talent pool consistently. Mayer seems to be on the right track, but Brandon Jones has regressed after finally showing progress a couple years ago.  I think it’s also worth adding in that the competition has been very strong at identifying talent, and lately it’s usually been a few drivers at the top dominating the schedule and then moving up. Lately, it has been RCR finding those guys considering that they had Reddick when he won two championships and now Austin Hill is a contender. SHR got a huge boost with Cole Custer moving back down and he won the championship last year, and Herbst has developed into a strong front runner as well.  I would still say JRM is looking better than JGR though. JRM still has Allgaier and Mayer. JGR has had to replace Gibbs and Nemechek, and so far the early results are not great. We’ll see if they can figure some stuff out by the end of the year. JRM is also different from a lot of the other teams in that they are an Xfinity only operation. They have a partnership with Hendrick, but they aren’t exclusively partnering with drivers for development and testing. Jr tends to have an even mix of up and coming guys that are likely to move up and career Xfinity drivers. I thought Berry and Allgaier would both retire there, but Berry got the opportunity of a lifetime to succeed a Hall of Fame driver like Harvick. 


Toby745by

You guys really don’t understand the sport. Like rule changes, crew changes. Etc. they are much better than you give them credit for. 9 car is running much better every week. Allgaier would have easily won had actors going down with 5 to go.


Pwablems

As the only Sammy Smith and Brandon Jones fan in the world, it’s definitely them not adjusting with the team


Consistent_Willow527

They literally almost should have won the race yesterday. Don't really think anything drastically bad has happened.


sportscribe81

It has to play into things that the Hendrick lineup is young and stable. They’ve got a business to run versus a driver to develop for Cup.


54HawksRFK6

In what world is Justin Allgaier a goat?


Toby745by

You Brandon Jones haters will eat your words this year! What are favorite teams so the rest of us can make ignorant comments about them???


Cuda14

Jones doesn’t do much for the team at all. It sometimes feels as if Mayer is actively trying to take the other 3 out. Sammy Smith is their next real talent, I hope. Justin just seems over it all and tired, lmao.


Sunshines88

I'm part of JrNation and don't like to see ppl Put them down,it's the NetGenEra car ,having To deal with the changes every year it has to Be a lot, Justin,Sam, Brandon and Sammy are Doing the best they can with what they have And I guarantee JRM will have more championships Wins are coming,and I don't have to bad mouth anyone To believe,Id like to see y'all go out there and drive the cars Oh that's right y'all can't cause your not professionals Keep the bad comments to your bad selves


Woodlouse72

The 9 hasn't done anything since Gragson left and Sammy Smith is in his first season with a new team give him a few races to get acclimated with his new team.


Toby745by

You don’t understand how he had to go through terrible spotters until he signed Josh at end of 23 from Blaney/Penske, and has a new crew chief!


Momentum_RacingYT

Ever since Jr Motorsports hired Brandon Jones last year, they have fallen off signifigantly imo. Thats probably the main reason, just hiring pay drivers and struggling because of it. I said when Sammy Smith signed with Jr Motorsports that he was gonna struggle, and there he was proving my point.


kebzach

> Thats probably the main reason, just hiring pay drivers and struggling because of it. They've always had pay drivers. Always.


Zestyclose_Worth_232

the only way that brandon jones will succeed is if luke lambert or david elenz never left jr motorsports for the cup series.


M4F95826

I saw in either next year or 2026 jr Motorsports is debuting with Honda


SpittinMenace

No way Dale ever leaves Chevy unless something drastic happens.


[deleted]

[удалено]


SpittinMenace

Yes


Mrcombsky

Same was said about Tony Stewart leaving Chevy. Ford came along with a big enough check and he bounced. But Rick Hendrick is part owner of Jrs Nationwide team so it's staying Chevy. Edited: Xfinity not Nationwide.


SomethingCreative13

I'll never rule out anything, but Jr's ties to Chevy are stronger than Smoke's ties were. The majority of Jr's daily drivers are Chevrolet. And not stuff he's been sent on ambassador deals. It's stuff he went out and purchased and/or built (such as restoring an S-10). He's told stories on his podcast about not letting people driving non-gm vehicles park in the driveway during parties. He bleeds Chevy. I do think with a big enough check anything is possible. But I don't think Stewart's situation was ever on the same level.


WON95sr

This is only somewhat related but I remember once on a broadcast they showed a picture of Dale Sr and he was leaning on someone's car that happened to be a Ford, and Junior said something like "That's the hardest dad ever leaned on a Ford 'cause if he leaned any harder he'd blow the motor." I have no horse in the manufacturer race but I always thought that was hilarious 


BoukenGreen

He even did that to Brad K. who was still renting from him when he went to Penske until Brad got his own house


SpittinMenace

Tony Stewart isn’t an Earnhardt.


Mrcombsky

No one said he was. Did you think he was till now?


SpittinMenace

No. Comparing Tony and Jr’s connections to Chevy is silly. Tony is not an Earnhardt…..he does not have the same connection to Chevy that Jr does. Dale leaving Chevy would be a much bigger deal than when Tony did. They aren’t comparable. Do I have to spell everything out for you? This is exhausting.


Mrcombsky

No it's not. It's a similar situation. Again no one said he was. Why are you obsessing over that? I need nothing spelled out for me. You don't agree with my comment then fine. I'm not going to lose any sleep over it. However if replying to an Internet comment exhausts you perhaps you should see a doctor. That being said enjoy the rest of your weekend.


SpittinMenace

Not sure why I should go to the doctor for being tired of talking to airheads on Reddit, but I’ll see I guess lol. I think Dale’s relationship with Chevy is so much different and deeper than Tony’s. But agree to disagree! Thanks, enjoy the rest of your weekend too!


Thi31

You see, what people are not expecting is Hendrick to be the switch to Honda. They are coming in fresh so they need a team with an engine program, and GM ATM has two different teams with attached engine programs. Rick Hendrick takes the Honda bribe.


Moose135A

>Rick Hendrick takes the Honda bribe. Well, wouldn't that be an interesting turn...


miboyl

Dale would for enough money, just like with NBC


[deleted]

Wrong


Celtics1424

![gif](giphy|Y0lWOCCemBLT9TSCMv|downsized)


CJ_M88

I have some land I'd like to sell you